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IS Torches Iraqi Oil Wells

IS Torches Iraqi Oil Wells

The self-styled Islamic State terrorist group set fire to three oil wells near Hawija, west of the oil city of Kirkuk, one of two areas of Iraq still under their control, military and oil officials said on Monday. Iraqi security forces were using bulldozers to control the fires started by the militants in the early hours of Saturday to slow the advance of US-backed Iraqi forces and Shia militia groups toward Hawija town, military officials said, Reuters reported. The Allas Oilfield, 35 km south of Hawija, was one of the main sources of revenue for IS, which in 2014 declared a caliphate in parts of Syria and Iraq. “Terrorists are trying to use the rising smoke to avert airstrikes while retreating from the area toward Hawija,” said Iraqi Army Colonel Mohammed al-Jabouri. Military officials said the fire had been brought under control at one of the wells, while the other two were still burning. They said it would take about three days to put out the fires.